


The Lighthouse Keepers

by HexalianRebel_FeatheredPanda



Series: Shorts Box [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Angst and Tragedy, Body Horror, Dark Magic, Dragons, Familiars, Gen, Horror, Magic, Talking Animals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-27
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:27:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22919209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HexalianRebel_FeatheredPanda/pseuds/HexalianRebel_FeatheredPanda
Summary: The lighthouse at the top of Eskerport Hill shone bright over the bay every night. Every hour, it rotated over the village to silence the scutters and whispers when the moon turned her eyes away. Lighthouse Keepers were always among the few allowed into the moonsight, only chosen after months of testing and training in the capital city. Should an emergency arise, there could be no chance of failure.
Series: Shorts Box [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1647313
Comments: 2
Kudos: 1





	The Lighthouse Keepers

The lighthouse at the top of Eskerport Hill shone bright over the bay every night. Every hour, it rotated over the village to silence the scutters and whispers when the moon turned her eyes away.

The townspeople kept to their homes, or, frankly, wherever they found themselves when the sun fled the moonsight. She alone chose who could walk under her gaze, and those unworthy bore her wrath on their very souls.

Lighthouse Keepers were always among the few allowed into the moonsight, only chosen after months of testing and training in the capital city. Should an emergency arise, there could be no chance of failure.

Failure was the last thing they had to worry about.

On the seventeenth Zeronsi, when the moonsight went dark over Eskerport, the village stayed silent even after the lighthouse started to rotate back to the bay. As the yellow light touched the water, the cone it made was split for mere seconds before the light vanished, and the lighthouse emitted a deafening howl.

Blackness enveloped the village; the moon would not return her gaze for another half-hour at the least. The bravest of people opened their windows curiously as the sound of shifting water could be heard in the distance, attempting to make out the shapes that dared to move. Near the center of the village, the first of the doors burst open.

Of the Keepers, the Luminescents were to deploy first in an emergency. Eskerport took great pride in their pair: a dashing, agile fox whose ears and tail glowed blue with Fires’ Light. His paws left a trail of wisps as they rushed down the cobbled path. Beside him, easily keeping pace, was a young woman, her arms and body embedded with shards of shattered Shimmerstones.

Their lights brought soft calls from the buildings: wishing luck; wishing safety.

The Wranglers and Snipers followed the trails their teammates set. Keeping as close as they could while weighed down with equipment. Waves could barely be heard splashing the docks, and the team of six ascended the hill to approach the base of the lighthouse.

“Halt!” The fox stood suddenly on his hind paws, gripping his partner’s cloak with one paw as she nearly stopped too late. Their lights illuminated the path, where several of the large glass panes had fallen and shattered into hazardous shrapnel. “Apologies, Captain Roi.” The fox growled, reaching into one of his uniform pockets and pulling out a lapis band to clasp onto his wrist. “The front door might be out of the question.”

The captain was one of the wranglers, a dark grey wolf that towered over the humans as she stood up. “We don’t have time to wait for the moonsight to return. We--”

The lighthouse howled again, nearly knocking over the team for their hesitation. Waves were now crashing into the base of the hill, and the whispers crept toward them from over the cliff.

“Push through, Etkos! Do it now!” The wolf barked as the Snipers raised their weapons to the darkness. Bolts of magic zipped through the air while the fox leaned forward; as the lapis band glowed, he unleashed a torrent of bright purple flame. All the whispers and footsteps scurried as he swept the flame across the base of the lighthouse. Something massive and formless detached from the wall and was promptly shot a dozen times before it could get too far.

The area had been cleansed, the cobble now shining under the Luminescents’ lights; The metal plating on the lighthouse glowed softly with retained heat. The now familiar howl rattled their bones as they pushed through the door.

The darkness inside was already suffocating. Words and sigils teased their ears and tried to etch into their souls. The Luminescents tried to spread their lights, shadows creeping to cover them and gripping their jaws.

“Sierra, on me.” The captain called to the other Wrangler, drawing a whip from the holster on her pack. Sierra knew better than to hesitate, pulling out her own whip and keeping close to Roi’s side as they advanced. Each crack of the whips made a flash that filled the whole tower with a searing glow. When the light filled the room, the Snipers could see the broken windows, and they took aim as black water splashed through. When the room was silent, the only moans came from poor Etkos as he struggled to reignite his Fire’s Light.

“Kora…” He groaned as his ears and tail came up to a weak purple. His muzzle bore a seven-fingered handprint, and black claw marks marred his uniform without tearing it. The human didn’t move as his paw reached for her sleeve. He recoiled in horror, his tail catching flame as he stood up shakily.

Her Shimmerstones had been blackened, and several had been wrenched from her body, likely consumed. Her last breaths should have echoed into the night with the pain, but the darkness had silenced her instantly. Etkos shuddered, falling back to all-fours and trying to touch his nose to her disfigured face.

It was simply common knowledge that humans were infinitely more susceptible to darkness, but those entrusted by the moonsight were supposed to be stronger.

“Detach, Etkos.” Roi called. There was no time to mourn; if this continued, there would be no time at all. The Snipers were already on either side of the fox, levelling their weapons at their fallen teammate.

Etkos was quiet, his paw pulling Kora’s limp hand onto his head. The fingers curled into his fur, someone’s will flexed her muscles and lifted her corpse to its feet.

“Detach now, Etkos; I will not hesitate to let you go with her! Lor, Festa!” The Snipers’ weapons clicked and glowed as their magic charged more powerful blasts. The lighthouse howled around them, and the black water beat against the outside of the building.

Somehow, in his mind, Kora’s eyes looked just like they had when she had first picked him up, her smile radiating concern and love. In reality, fingers pulled his eyelids, hands reaching from her mouth to pull his own. And he let them, his voice speaking the first words he ever learned:

“Good Night, Master.” His claws gripped at the corpse’s cloak, cleansing flames engulfing the far side of the room. Whispers and scuttles were silenced instantly in the fire, and Etkos’ ears and tail blazed with power as he stood up.

“Apologies, Captain…” He said stiffly, turning to lead them toward the staircase. “If you choose to end me, allow this to be my final act.”

“We will speak in the morning, Fox.” Roi insisted, picking him up for a moment to toss him further up the stairs. “Walk proudly. Lead.”

At the top of the stairs, nearly all of the glass had been destroyed. A mass of stone was embedded in the wall, leaking black water from several cracks. Wings and legs formed from the pools, dragging masses out to scamper across the floor toward their prey.

At the center of the room, once again unleashing a desperate howl, was the Light, writhing in agony as blackness clawed its form. Its wings and tail swung recklessly, its eyes glowing when it attempted to open them. The darkness pulled its glowing scales, dragged claws across its face, wrapped tendrils around its muzzle, and it spoke. No more whispers.

No Light; No more Light; No more Moonsight tonight; She dies, she dies; Her reign, it dies with her tonight; No more; You die; They die; No Light; Black, dark, water, night.

“Lor, Festa…” Roi snarled, cracking her whip through one of the forms. The Snipers raised their weapons again, filling the room with magic bolts. They fired as close as they could without striking the Light, and the Wranglers moved closer, their whips lashing around the Light’s wings and tail to still its flailing. Sierra drew a knife to slash blackness off of the beast’s back as she moved to mount it.

“Be still, Light; we have come to aid you!” She called, leaning back as a bolt passed her head. She lunged close to the Light’s head, stabbing hard at the shadows over its eyes. “Etkos! Illuminate!”

The Fox had been busy attempting to cleanse the massive stone, his flames unable to penetrate the black rock. When he was called, he didn’t hesitate to leave this post. He moved in front of the Light, holding up his paws as fire wrapped around his form. The Light, eyes finally opened, stared down at him. The beast’s eyes glowed brighter as they charged, but it wailed and howled again as it was struck.

“Get back, all of you!” Roi barked out, having checked the clock adorned on her arm. The Lighthouse Keepers rushed to their captain’s side, and as they huddled together, the room was filled with white light as the moon’s gaze returned to the village. Many of the voices shrieked before vanishing to silence, and the black water receded into the cracks on the stone.

The Light stumbled, soft growls leaving its maw as its eyes and scales glowed under the moonsight. It righted itself, catching its breath for mere seconds before opening its jaw to cast its cone of light over the water. The waves roared as they suddenly grew clear, and the crashing came less frequently as the light swept over the shoreline.

Success.

The humans stood in the windows, paying their respects under the moon’s gaze. Roi surveyed the damage. Repairs would have to be done in the morning, as well as removal of that stone. Etkos sat on the floor in shame, clutching his lapis band as he curled up on the polished wood.

A sound reached them after a few moments, a loud crashing of water. Turning to look, they could make out a massive shape, moving in the bay. Sierra pat the Light’s side, and it obediently angled its maw toward the creature. Its magic didn’t pierce this darkness, vanishing into its chest instead. The Lighthouse Keepers took up their arms, and the dark creature stepped closer, slowly. The Lighthouse shook as it leaned, a hand clutching the hill at its base. A head moved close to the windows, absorbing the light cast into it with no visible effect.

At its closeness, it was easier to make out shapes: teeth, sunken eyes with no color, a fur-covered snout and pointed ears. Its mouth opened slowly, and voices screamed as their forms lunged. The Light was grasped again, wings ripped from its shoulders, scales scraped from its hide, and its claws tearing into the wood before its body disappeared into the shadow’s closing mouth.

The Keepers were stunned. No one could move; no one so much as breathed. The shining, brilliant gold that the Light had originally cast, now filled the shadow’s eyes and bored into all of them.

Sarmonsi morning came over a silent village. The houses were broken, and the people shambled with ruined bones and bodies. The Lighthouse grounds were still littered with glass. And the water ran black, even in daylight.

**Author's Note:**

> Panda's Notes: Whether or not it surprises you, I used to call myself a novelist. But since my dumb brain can't focus very well lately, I've tried working on shorter stories. I kind of like it. ^w^ I'll be trying to share more original pieces; I hope you guys like them too.


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